Let’s make sure all the lights are working, all the toilets are flushing correctly, and all the glitches are smoothed out before the grand unveiling starting on Thursday, the last day of August.

Getting five games to get the ball rolling isn’t a bad thing – Hawaii-UMass might as well be Alabama-Florida State to the investment community – but it would’ve been nice to have one standout Power 5 vs. Power 5 game among the first five.

Whatever. There’s football before the big fight – and during, with Stanford vs. Rice. Let’s get it all going.

This is all just for spits, giggles, and entertainment purposes only, however, just in case you dabble …

Colorado State could and should be one of the biggest stories of the first weekend of the season. The Rams start out against Oregon State, and then get Colorado, with a chance to make a big national statement.

Outside of Boise State on a fairly consistent basis, and San Diego State a bit here and there, the Mountain West has a bad habit of wetting itself when it’s got a chance to make a big national statement. But this Ram team has the offensive firepower to push past the Beavers to kick this whole thing off.

But Gary Andersen is a whale of a head coach. He hasn’t been able to get it all going yet in Corvallis, but this Beaver team should be a whole lot tougher. The big key will be the improvement – if any – from a Colorado State defense that got ripped apart by Idaho when we last saw it do its thing. The Beavers have to be able to open it up a bit more.

I flip-flopped. Originally, I assumed Hawaii’s offense was going to be sharper, better, and stronger to start the season – and it might be – as it made the long trip to Amherst to deal with a UMass team that always underwhelms.

Last team with the ball wins. Hawaii making it’s longest eastern trip ever, and while the team is used to playing in funky hours, that has to matter to their internal clocks.

But the Minutemen have an offense, too. The over/under might be way low for two teams with sketchy defenses and enough firepower to each hang up 30 points without a problem.

Remember, last year the Rainbow Warriors won 46-40. Freaky things tend to happen in Hawaii, but now we’re being told that two teams that combined for 86 points are going to combine for 61.5? Even if it turns out to be wrong, in theory, the over is the right call.

How sharp is the BYU offense right away in the target practice game against Portland State? With LSU coming up, and with so many new moving parts, this is the game to get everything right – especially up front.

I originally predicted the Vikings would score around 20 on the Cougars. That might be ten too high.

Okay, Charlie Strong. Time to make this whole South Florida thing rock.

It might be a road game a long, long way away from Tampa, but if this is the USF team everyone thinks it could and should be, hanging up 50 shouldn’t be an issue against what should be a very, very bad San Jose State squad in a total rebuild mode.

Here’s the thing. USF doesn’t play a great schedule – there’s no Oklahoma or Louisville to face like Houston did last year – so points matter. Appearances matter. Blowouts matter. USF can’t just win, or it’ll get Western Michiganed. If it wants to be in any sort of discussion as a sleeper for the CFP, it has to be amazing.

Again, if this is the USF team it’s supposed to be, -22 shouldn’t be an issue.

And if this is the USF defense of last year, going over on the 70 shouldn’t be an issue, either.

The only thing that’s worth watching in the Stanford blowout-to-be over Rice is whether or not Keller Chryst 1) is in one piece and 2) can throw a consistent downfield pass. Rice won’t stop the run, but everyone knows that. This game is all about the Cardinal offensive balance it’ll need with massive showdowns coming up on the road at USC and San Diego State.

Yeah, Stanford will win without a problem, but -30.5? The Cardinal won’t turn it on to put 50+ on the board – and Rice should get a few excuse me points along the way.

I have no basis for this whatsoever, but part of me thinks the Australia factor will kick in and the Cardinal won’t want to totally embarrass the Owls in an exhibition a million miles from home. David Shaw might take the foot off the gas a wee bit earlier than if this was played in Palo Alto.

But that’s just a total guess. Don’t get mad if Stanford goes jerkweed in a 77-0 blasting.

Mayweather-McGregor might be a totally ridiculous gimmick show, but you don’t think McGregor will sit there and take the beating of his life if he has to? I have a hard time thinking he’ll get knocked out,

Outside of a draw, if there was a way both of them could lose, I’d root for that very, very hard.